Category Orange County Social Media | The Boutique Real Estate Group

December 18, 2013 by The Boutique Real Estate Group

The 12 Tips of Christmas from Top Real Estate Pros

Christmas is just around the corner, and most Real Estate professionals have turned their attention to some last minute present-shopping, turkey-stuffing and snow-shredding.

So for this week’s Know It Now article we convinced 12 of the biggest names in Real Estate to spill the beans on what made them so successful.

Raj Qsar, Christophe Choo, Joe Schutt, Phil DuMoulin, Leigh Brown, Cindy Banks and more have found their own unique way to separate themselves and generate a whack of business. So take notes!

The holiday spirit is upon us, and with such big names in the mood to share, this is a must-read occasion.

‘Tis the season.

So in no particular order, here are 12 Tips of Christmas from Top Real Estate Pros.

Enjoy!

December 2, 2013 by The Boutique Real Estate Group

The Boutique Real Estate Group To Open Its Newest Office in Corona Del Mar

Click the photo above to view more information about our new office!

Call us today at 949-612-2535 or visit http://TheBoutiqueRE.com
The Boutique Real Estate Group is delighted to announce the opening of its 2nd office in Coastal Orange County. Our newest office will be located in the beach community of Corona Del Mar, Ca.
Most Recent Accolades:
*2013 Next Generation Brokerage
*2013 Top 100 Most Influential Real Estate Leaders in the USA
*2013 Top 20 Real Estate Videos in USA

The Boutique Real Estate Group represents one of the most dominant Real Estate Teams in the Orange County Real Estate Market. Every Real Estate listing is assigned a best-in-class sales & marketing campaign, and receives the support of industry leading marketing, advertising, social media, video, staging & interior design, graphics & design, all of whom work together to develop a strategic and tactical marketing plan customized to each client and each property.

Call us today at 949-612-2535 or visit us at http://TheBoutiqueRE.com

Whether you are looking to buy or sell Orange County Real Estate or if you are an Orange County Real Estate Professional looking for a change give us a call today!

The Boutique Real Estate Group
South & Coastal OC
3653 E. Coast Hwy
Corona Del Mar, Ca 92625

North & Central OC
3000 E. Birch St. Suite 102B
Brea, Ca 92821

in Brea / Coastal Orange County / Orange County Luxury Real Estate / Orange County Real Estate / Orange County Social Media / Orange County Technology / South Orange County 0 comments

November 30, 2013 by The Boutique Real Estate Group

From The Trenches: Raj Qsar of The Boutique Real Estate Group

Every month FreeAgent by AdWerx brings you advice from top-performing agents and real estate technology experts in “From the Trenches.” Here atAdWerx, we believe that to be the best, you have to learn from the best. While doing your own research can be helpful, getting tips straight-from-the source can offer new perspectives and give you a taste of each real estate maven’s personality.

This month in From the Trenches, we’ll hear from Raj Qsar, Principal and Owner ofThe Boutique Real Estate Group, in California. His company serves as one of the most dominant real estate teams in the Orange County real estate market, serving north, central, south and coastal Orange County. It’s easy to see why they come out on top. While agents with The Boutique Real Estate Group excel with their personal branding, the marketing of each listing the firm represents is impeccable. According to theboutiquere.com, “Every real estate listing is assigned a best-in-class sales & marketing campaign, and receives the support of industry leading marketing, advertising, social media, video, staging & interior design, graphics & design, all of whom work together to develop a strategic and tactical marketing plan customized to each client and each property.”

Raj is no stranger to the value of technology and social media. Aside from employing modern marketing in every aspect of his business, he has also spoken professionally on using these strategies in real estate. Raj was recently named one of the Top 100 Most Influential Real Estate Leaders for 2013 by Inman News. This annual list recognizes those who embody leadership, ingenuity, strength, conviction, power, persistence, perseverance and progress. Raj is also a contributor at Inman News covering the topics of creative video for real estate, social media and networking. The Boutique Real Estate Group was just selected in 2013 as a Next Generation Brokerage by Better Homes & Garden Real Estate and 1000 Watt Consulting. These NextGen brokerage projects represent a new breed of real estate brokerages growing across the country. These firms empower agents and clients by providing the most up-to-date and flexible technology. They build meaningful brands, and attract and engage new customers.

1. How did you get your start as a real estate agent?

It’s a funny story. When I initially began selling real estate, I just wanted to sell one to two homes a year and keep my real estate career relatively small. After having my license for just three days, I was absolutely hooked. I was in escrow with a client and it was just the beginning. The social media and technology aspects of my business came later, but I’ve been addicted to the real estate industry since day one.

2. You’re very active on Pinterest. What advice can you give to agents about using Pinterest for real estate?

Pinterest is great, but I advise people to not be a “real estate agent” on Pinterest. Showcase your community and lifestyle.

Raj keeps a personal Pinterest page focused on his personal brand aside from the Pinterest page of The Boutique Real Estate Group. Both feature a variety of content with some overlap. Topics they post about include aspects of the Orange County lifestyle, including homes, pools, luxury items, famous residents, beaches, cars and style. The company page also features a board dedicated to their video tours.

3. In a hot real estate market like this, it’s tempting to spend too much time working in the business instead of on building the business. How much time should an agent spend on marketing themselves versus marketing listings?

The fact is, busy agents need help. None of us can do this alone, and you shouldn’t try to do it all on your own. At The Boutique Real Estate Group, we believe the team approach is best, because there are just too many hats to wear right now for an agent. You really have to dedicate time to both. Remember to “walk before you can run,” and don’t get too ahead of yourself. Build your team block by block. Building and nurturing a quality team takes time! And always hire the best.

If you are an agent, find a team that you respect and admire. Demonstrate your skills, and ask to join. If you are lucky enough to become a part of the team, work hard and contribute. Soak it all up and enjoy the ride!

4. As an agent, you value social media and technology. What are some specific examples of ways they have helped you communicate with clients and increase productivity?

Social is just an amplifier. If you are a rockstar agent, social will just amplify all of the great things you are doing. You have to be doing well in your business for social media to add value to your brand. Also, my tagline is, “If you are not in my newsfeed, you do not exist!” It’s not enough to just have a social presence. You have to be engaged with users and clients if you want to get noticed.

Twitter really is a cocktail party. It is a great tool for agents, but remember, you are in and out in 140 characters. Make every post short and simple, and talk to people! If you talk to people they will talk back!

5. What trends are you seeing in real estate right now in terms of technology and social media?

We are a 99.9 percent paperless office. All of our agents sign a contract that they will have an iPhone and iPad at the start of employment. We also have a technology standard – we call it the #tbreg tech standard – which all agents must master. This is the new normal.

Many agents struggle to adopt the technology we have now, and I’m not sure why they put this on the back burner. For our team, it’s all we talk about. We ask ourselves, “How can we create a REAL estate experience that our clients will enjoy?” We want the entire experience to be as easy and painless as possible. Today, utilizing technology is an integral part of that experience with clients.

If you are a great agent, you will get referrals. It’s that easy. Put your clients first in all you do and the technology and referrals will follow.

One way The Boutique Real Estate Group goes the extra mile for their clients is by producing creative listing videos. Watch the story unfold in this video for 9741 Janice Circle, with gorgeous shots of the home in an entertaining and beautiful presentation. The Boutique Real Estate Group is at the forefront of video for real estate, and one of their videos was awarded a spot in the Top 20 Real Estate Videos in the USA in 2013. Watch the video here.

6. Is there anything else you’d like to share with FreeAgent readers?

I have truly made some wonderful friends over the years via social. It has been a wonderful ride and has been a true blessing. Turning online relationships into meaningful real life friendships has been one of the greatest joys for me. There are so many great people in this world and in our industry who are trying to raise the bar in all we do. If you take the time to talk to them, they will talk back.

Find Raj Qsar on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, and be on the lookout for the opening of The Boutique Real Estate Group’s second luxury office in Corona Del Mar, California in January 2014.

As an agent, do you ask yourself “How can I create a REAL estate experience that my clients will enjoy?” What do you think are the most important parts of this experience? Let us know in the comments below!

in Orange County Luxury Real Estate / Orange County Real Estate / Orange County Social Media / Orange County Technology / Random Orange County 0 comments

November 30, 2013 by The Boutique Real Estate Group

The Boutique Real Estate Group Joins RESAAS – The Real Estate Social Network ™

Vancouver, British Columbia CANADA, Nov 26, 2013 (Filing Services Canada via COMTEX) — RESAAS Services Inc. (RSS – CNQ), The Real Estate Social Network(tm), is excited to announce that The Boutique Real Estate Group (http://www.theboutiquere.com/) will be joining the RESAAS (http://www.resaas.com/)platform.

Why are we so excited? Simply put, The Boutique Real Estate Group is at the forefront of the real estate industry. Just look at their depth of engagement and interaction across all social platforms. Every listing of theirs is assigned a world-class sales & marketing campaign team, receiving the support of industry leaders in social media, internet marketing and print advertisement. For example, take a look at the listing video (http://rebla.st/9t6bf3a) for 49 Golden Eagle, Irvine, California in the exclusive triple-gated neighbourhood of Shady Canyon. The Boutique’s marketing campaigns include an aggressive mix of print advertisement & Boutique branding, social media integration, search engine optimization, HDR Photography (see below), 360? HD V-Tours, full responsive custom built property websites and full-colour custom property brochures, as well as top placement of the world’s largest search engines and real estate websites.

Raj Qsar, Owner of The Boutique Real Estate Group, has a dream and is on a mission. He has used his more than 18 years of sales, marketing and leadership experience to turn the brokerage into one of the most dominant teams in the Orange County Real Estate market, bringing the key components of his brokerage entirely “in-house” – including back-end SEO and technology, graphics and design, staging and interior design, as well as social media, listing and transaction concierges for each of their agents.

What’s more, Raj has traveled the country to educate and consult other brokerages, brokers and real estate professionals on the value of technology and social media as a local and national speaker. In 2013 he was named as one of the Top 100 Most Influential Real Estate Leaders by Inman News. Also in 2013, The Boutique Real Estate Group was named as a Next Generation Brokerage by Better Homes & Gardens and 1000 Watt Consulting.(http://nextgenbrokerage.com/) Finally, The Boutique Real Estate Group won an award for the Top 20 Real Estate Videos in the U.S.A.

Now he’s joined RESAAS – The Real Estate Social Network(tm), along with his entire team at The Boutique Real Estate Group.

“The real estate industry needs to think outside of the box and we need to stop thinking like real estate agents,” said Raj Qsar, “which is why I am always on the search for new ways to improve my team’s ability to sustain their elite service through technology and social media. RESAAS is an exciting opportunity for us to do just that. It will significantly improve internal communication, boost each agent’s personal marketability and further increase the exposure for our listings.”

Each agent at The Boutique Real Estate Group will receive his or her own corporate branded agent page on RESAAS, and will be connected together into an exclusive group to communicate and stay connected with every other member of their team. In addition, The Boutique Real Estate Group will have its own corporate branded page in order to easily broadcast relevant information and market their company’s content.

To view the image “Raj-Listing-Photo.jpg” please click on the following link:

http://corporate.resaas.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Raj-Listing-Photo.jpg

“We are very excited to welcome The Boutique Real Estate Group to RESAAS,” said Nadia Suttle, Account Executive at RESAAS. “They are a prime example of how to lead the real estate industry by providing modern, effective and quality service for their clients and their listings. With them now onboard, it lends massive credence to RESAAS – The Real Estate Social Network(tm) as a powerful tool for real estate professionals everywhere.”

About RESAAS SERVICES INC.

RESAAS – The Real Estate Social Network(tm), is designed specifically for the real estate professional to connect and communicate in real-time. Known as real estate broadcasts, RESAAS’ powerful reblasts(r) engine automatically generates all of your real estate workflow into valuable social content that is instantly pushed out to the RESAAS platform and other social networks. Visit www.resaas.com.

On Behalf of RESAAS

Danielle Sissons

VP Communications

RESAAS Services Inc.

Telephone: (604)558-2929; Email: danielle.sissons@resaas.com

Investor Relations

RESAAS Services Inc.

Telephone: (705) 888-2756; Email: scott.young@resaas.com

The CNSX has not reviewed, nor approved or disapproved the content of this press release.

Forward-Looking Information:

This press release and the company’s website referenced herein may include forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation, concerning the company’s technology platform. Forward-looking information is based on certain key expectations and assumptions made by RESAAS’ management, including future plans for the design and development of the company’s technology platform. Although RESAAS believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward-looking information is based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking information because RESAAS can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release. RESAAS disclaims any intent or obligation to update publicly any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, other than as required by applicable securities laws.

To view this press release as a PDF, please click on the following link:

http://www.usetdas.com/pr/resaas11262013.pdf

Source: RESAAS Services Inc. (cnsx:RSS) http://www.resaas.com

Maximum News Dissemination by FSCwire. http://www.fscwire.com

in Orange County Luxury Real Estate / Orange County Real Estate / Orange County Social Media / Random Orange County 0 comments

October 8, 2013 by The Boutique Real Estate Group

2013 Next Generation Brokerage by Better Homes & Garden Real Estate and 1000 Watt Consulting

We are honored to be selected as the 2013 Next Generation Brokerage by Better Homes & Garden Real Estate and 1000 Watt Consulting. The Boutique Real Estate Group is a new breed of real estate brokerage. We are attracting and engaging new customers. Empowering our agents and clients with the latest, most flexible technology and building meaningful brand.

The story of the real estate agent turned broker is a familiar one. A natural progression in the industry.

Raj Qsar is that broker. After working for 12 years in the business as an agent, in 2013 he opened The Boutique Real Estate Group in Orange County, Calif.

His vision? Build a brokerage that is outstanding at visual marketing.

Design is the rule, not the exception

The first rule of real estate has always been location. But Raj and his team are proving that today it’s just as much about design. Design in web and print marketing, video, and the homes themselves.

This is why Raj’s company team page contains nearly as many professional designers and creative roles as it does agents.

Bypassing a typical brokerage organizational chart, Raj’s team includes a creative director, interior designer and cinematographer. From day one, Raj has made quality design a key part of Boutique Real Estate’s unique value proposition.

“We’re a sales and marketing team, but we happen to focus on real estate,” Raj said.

Boutique’s approach to design in digital marketing really shines in their single-property websites, HDR photography, HD virtual tours and high-definition videos.

Every home is staged and professionally photographed for inclusion in custom designed print and digital marketing materials. They shoot a video of nearly every listing, and own all of the necessary equipment from cameras to lenses to lighting and sound.

“We’re a sales and marketing team, but we happen to focus on real estate.”

This treatment is engrained in the Boutique Real Estate customer experience. Raj and his team are uncompromising on this. From the full-time stager they’ve hired to the in-house videographer and graphic designer, clearly this is where the brokerage breaks the mold.

Video is the rising star

In 2010, Raj and his team started experimenting with video, realizing quickly that it paid off in terms of return on investment. “People were showing up at our open houses knowing it was us because of the videos and photography they’d seen in marketing materials,” Raj said.

“I figured out quickly, though, that hiring third-party vendors was a losing investment,” he said. That’s why he purchased all of the necessary audio and visual equipment and brought on a professional videographer to focus solely on videos.

While plenty of brokerage companies and agent teams create video in their marketing, Boutique Real Estate’s take is different. They use high production value without going over the top, subtle humor, contemporary music and an imaginative and fun approach to the typical home tour.

Check out a few of their recent property videos here, and you’ll see it feels more like you’re getting a taste of the lifestyle associated with homes than just a straight walkthrough on camera. And that’s the goal.

Natural selection

In keeping with a focus on high-quality marketing and building a unique brand around that value, Raj’s approach to recruiting is to be highly selective. “We say no to more people wanting to join us than we say yes to,” he said.

Part of this is because the whole notion behind the “boutique” brokerage is working with a highly focused small team. Also, the allure is customized marketing, which becomes challenging at a larger scale.

In general, Raj looks for sales associates who are passionate, relatable and people-oriented, and who are active participants in their community.

What lies ahead

When thinking about the future, Raj and his team remain open-minded. He likes to make sure they’re always thinking ahead to what consumers will want and need five years from now – how they’ll want to do business, how they’ll want to view properties and how agents will work best.

One goal is to open Boutique offices in select California markets, including Corona Del Mar, Napa, Palm Springs and North San Diego.

Of course, no one can predict the future, but Boutique Real Estate will continue to keep an eye on design trends and lead its real estate marketing in these same trajectories.

See more at: http://nextgenbrokerage.com/company/the-boutique-real-estate-group/#sthash.z57bEFuL.dpuf

in Anaheim Hills / Brea / Central Orange County / Coastal Orange County / Fullerton / North Orange County / Orange County Luxury Real Estate / Orange County Real Estate / Orange County Social Media / Orange County Technology / Placentia / Random Orange County / South Orange County / Yorba Linda 0 comments

August 22, 2013 by The Boutique Real Estate Group

Getting Business Done. Everywhere.

Customer Story: Jeremy Lehman

You always hear about how technology can solve this problem or that problem, or help you do something better or more efficiently. While it might seem like there are endless possibilities – sometimes knowing how to leverage technology or “use it” can be more of a challenge than finding the right solutions.

Meet Jeremy Lehman – he really “gets it.”

Jeremy is a technology enthusiast turned real estate agent in Orange County, California who is always on the go. I gave Jeremy a call the other day as he was in-between a quick stop at the Apple store and picking up his kids from school. “I would say that I am on my mobile devices ninety plus percent of the time,” Jeremy told me.

Having his phone on him 15 hours a day is not uncommon for Jeremy. “I am rarely on a computer and it’s not that my mobile devices have completely replaced my computer because it is necessary, but it’s because I am on the go so much it makes sense to use my mobile devices to get things done rather than waiting until I get back home or wherever,” Jeremy said, adding with a chuckle “I spend almost no time in the office, almost to the dismay of my team.”

Jeremy is a Realtor and CTO of The Boutique Real Estate Group in Orange County, California.

However, just because Jeremy’s not in the office doesn’t mean he isn’t working, in fact he sees it as just the opposite. “I don’t believe that someone who’s always in the office is doing incredibly well, because the reality is business gets done everywhere but the office these days,” Jeremy said. He still prefers doing business “belly to belly” with his clients because after all real estate is a service-based business. Being mobile allows him to be more efficient with his time and proactive with his clients. “If I am driving my car and I get a call from my assistant, client or another agent who needs a specific document for a deal, I need to be able to access any document from the road at any given time,” Jeremy said. He added that it doesn’t matter if he is on vacation or on the golf course – he never has to tell a client he is too busy doing personal things to get back to them. “I don’t think those sort of answers are acceptable these days,” Jeremy said, adding it’s okay if he’s using his time for personal reasons because he can still get the job done and is not delaying transactions.

I asked Jeremy what sort of mobile tools he uses while on the go and he said he uses an iPhone, iPad and a stable of core apps that included Cartavi and DocuSign. He also said his group, The Boutique Real Estate Group, uses mobile forms that are tablet compatible and that he uses DocuSign Ink as a signing solution for his iPhone and PDF Expert for his iPad. He said PDF Expert allows him to write on the contract through his iPad to add additional terminology. He also uses MLS Touch, which allows him to access MLS listing at all times. Jeremy’s suite of mobile solutions is pretty impressive and allows him to do everything on the go, which is what I meant when I said “he really gets it!”

Jeremy does not just use technology to stay on the road though; he also uses it to get more business. He maintains a significant web presence and uses social media to market his offerings. “I think it is important that we have profiles on any place that a client is going, so if clients are going to Zillow then you need a presence on Zillow, if they are going to Realtor.com – then you need a presence there.”

Jeremy said most of the people in his group also have personal websites and are very searchable. His personal website is http://about.me/jeremylehman and came up immediately when I searched his name on Google.

Jeremy also said he is doing mostly listings now even though his business used to be more 50/50 buyers and sellers. “We are in an extreme sellers market,” Jeremy said. He also added that shifting business models’ is difficult but he has used the internet to establish himself and develop a steady stream of listings. “I guess it is marketing the whole negotiating dynamic, using technology, but also offering a high personal level of customer service,” Jeremy said. I asked Jeremy how he got into real estate and he said was actually working with a title company but a Senate bill would have gotten rid of the services that he offered so in 2007 he decided to get his real estate license and become an agent, and as he puts it, “I always sort of ‘got’ real estate.”

Jeremy is also very involved in leadership and serves on the Board of Directors at the Pacific West Association of Realtors and the California Association of Realtors. He is also a technology trainer and mentor, and occasionally does real estate technology workshops for Apple. He will tell you though, for as savvy as he is with technology, “I’m not nearly as technical as people think I am. I just sort of understand technology and how to use it.” Even though Jeremy has figured out how to use leverage technology to his advantage, he still prides himself on providing “likable” customer service, fast response times and doing a very professional job.

If you are thinking about listing a property in Orange County, just look-up ‘Jeremy Lehman’ and you’ll find him at his Personal Website, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Trulia,YourSoCalAgent, Instagram… the list goes on and on. He is not hard to find, trust me.

in Anaheim Hills / Brea / Central Orange County / Coastal Orange County / North Orange County / Orange County Luxury Real Estate / Orange County Real Estate / Orange County Social Media / Orange County Technology / Placentia / Random Orange County / South Orange County / Yorba Linda 0 comments

March 15, 2013 by Raj Qsar

Top 99 Realtors on Twitter | Does Your Agent Tweet?

By Raj Qsar via Websitebox-Team

Selling Real Estate 140 Characters at a time.

#top99realtors

A look at the national list of the top 99 Realtors who are utilizing Twitter to gain regional & national influence in this social world of ours. Information is based on the amount of followers, quality of tweets, clout and influence.

in Orange County Real Estate / Orange County Social Media / Orange County Technology 0 comments

February 14, 2013 by Raj Qsar

Why video, why now?

Sunday Feb 10^th, 2013
By Raj Qsar, Principal | Owner of Premier Orange County Real Estate
@rajqsar

Wikipedia gives us a history of the word emotion as it dates back to 1579, when it was adapted from the French word emouvoir, which means “to stir up.” This truly puts a capsule around why we have made video a primary marketing footprint for our clients as we transition into 2013. We are looking to “stir-up” those deep emotions of buyers looking for residential real estate in Orange County, Ca.

We want to showcase the emotion of what its like to live in this particular home, in this particular neighborhood, in this particular city within the curtains of Orange County, Ca. We start by spending time with our sellers and asking them what they truly love the most about their home, neighborhood & city and what they will miss the most. This allows us to begin storyboarding our video (we think of videos as mini-movies) around those particular aspects that they love so much and can include hot spots like restaurants, schools, parks, farmers markets or even the weather!

One of our favorite videos was “the pool party” video in a great little town in North Orange County called Brea. What we showcase here is the true lifestyle of this community and what a buyer and to-be homeowner could expect from living in this family friendly neighborhood. Video Link Here. One HUGE Vision, Two days of shooting, 1 night shoot, 3 luxury cars, 2 Cinematographers, lots of equipment, 12 “actors,” a ton of edits in post production truly brought to life the unique qualities of this FAB city!

Regardless of price point, the emotional aspect of video can really play a part in a home buyers quest of going from searching for a home to finding a home. Another fabulous video we produced was for a lower priced Luxury Low Rise Condo in the City of Garden Grove in Orange County called Chapman Commons represented by our very own Jeremy Lehman (who made a cameo appearance in the video with his new puppy Max as well). Video Link Here. Listed for $319,000 this property sold for $22,000 more than an identical unit right next door and also closed for $48,000 over the appraised value. How’s that for stirring up emotions!

Got a chopper? Ray Fernandez sure does! How else do we capture the lifestyle of La Habra Heights just on the Orange County & LA border? This hillside community was built with Rural in mind. Each property is typically set on at least 1 acre of land, which gives residents & homeowner’s privacy and luxury. There are no sidewalks or street lights but plenty of wildlife and trails throughout this great city where you can enjoy the great outdoors. Watch Video Here. One of the best ways to really capture La Habra Heights and this property is from up above!

Video marketing truly starts with a vision. What’s your vision for this home, in this neighborhood, in this city? What do you know about this home, this neighborhood & this city that you want to share. What makes your city so great? Once the vision is set then it needs to be put it into motion. C.S. Lewis says, “There are far better things ahead than any we leave behind.”

Real Estate & Video marketing is nothing new in our industry and just like anything we do to market properties it first begins with an idea. That idea needs to be captured, created and published for the road ahead.

in Orange County Luxury Real Estate / Orange County Real Estate / Orange County Social Media / Orange County Technology 0 comments

February 1, 2013 by Raj Qsar